Silver Ridge Mountains
Nestled in the ranges that divide Quel'thelas and Eversong from the rest of the world is Daan'Mearn'Daama; a rustic and wild province of Quel'thelas, untamed from before the Quel'dorei ever set foot upon the shores of the Eastern Kingdoms. Known more by it's common name, the Silver Ridge Mountain range (so called because of the way the snow reflects light at it's peaks), often shortened to just "The Ridges", Daan'Mearn'Daama is a land of rolling hills that climb ever upwards into the peaks of it's namesake. Landlocked but broken up by several rivers, the region is rich in mineral resources, timber, and arable land perfect for ranching, though some is used for farming. Today, however, the land is blighted and overrun with remnants from The Fall. Undead abound, polluting the Ridge's once verdant lands with sickness and taint. Rumours speak of individual ghouls and zombies animated with some kind of crackling fire, of a hooded figure that walks among the dead and visits terrible wrath upon intruders, of a curse that has befallen it from before old times and still lingers to today. No one who values their life walks the deeper Ridges today, leaving the southern parts of the region abandoned since the Fall. However, not all of the Ridges is lost. A string of communities, saved by circumstance and the expenditure of many lives, has continued to live and survive along its northern border. Stubborn holdouts who refuse to leave their homes, they cling to a past that seems dead and forgotten, unwilling to let it go. History The Silver Ridge Mountains have been inhabited since before the Sunstriders made their triumphant march north. Landing along the western coast of what would eventually be part of southern Quel'thelas, they fought a series of battles against the Amani as they carved out a place for themselves to settle. Eventually they had claimed a space stretching from the western shores to the mountain ranges they called home. This size was not to last. When the Sunstriders came north with the rest of their brethren, the people of the Ridges were faced with a choice: Bend to the rule of their former kings, or fight their own kin. They chose the former and submitted themselves to Sunstrider rule. What followed was a slow decline as each diplomatic and economic bungle by it's leading family, the Redarrows, lead to more and more of the Ridges getting carved off and parceled out to other noble houses to save face or to keep their sovereignty. This culminated with The Fall, when the Ridges could no longer keep itself sustained through the losses it endured. Now it sits as a land divided, the northern half the only habitable part remaining at the edges of a land blighted by the undead. People The people of the Ridges tend to be self-reliant, enterprising individuals, with a strong inclination towards personal freedom. It is a point of pride to most families that they can take care of basic necessities such as food, clothing and shelter on their own, without needing to ask for assistance from their neighbors. However, as much as the denizens pride being self-sufficient, they also have found the strength of community - of working together to the same goal. To this end, most of the people of the Ridges cling very tightly to their local communities, giving what they can and remaining involved on the local level. Locations Dustwood - A small town on the north eastern edge of the Southern Ridges. It is one of the few places with living trees still standing. Dustwood is under the auspices of Elder Vakosi Everdew, a venerable elf almost a millennia old. She's begun to go blind and has started developing issues walking, leading those she leads to believe a successor will be named soon. Blue River - A trading settlement situated on one of the Northern Ridges many rivers, so named because of the unusual tint of the water as it leaves the mountains. Elder Toricas Greenspring, an elf of only fifty years, was elected to lead the river settlement post-Burning in the absence of a more qualified individual. He has taken the lessons of the Fall and the Burning to heart, leading cautiously and always with an eye towards the future. Hope Hill - A farming community in the center-north of the Northern Ridges. Currently led by Elder Zeten Dusksprinter, a veteran of Kael'thas' campaign in the Outlands. After his prince's betrayal, Zeten could no longer stomach military life and retired to Hope Hill to live in peaceful obscurity. He was elected after helping lead a counter-attack against a surprise Amani siege of the town, and has done an acceptable enough job to continue being elected. Field’s Landing - Another settlement situated along a river, Field's Landing used to be a hub for the Ridge's lumber exports. Now it serves the opposite, being a hub for imports brought in from outside the Ridges. Elder Narab’in Riverrun has recently been elected after the accidental drowning of his predecessor and is still finding his feet as Elder. Palehill - A farming community, set at the top of a series of bluffs just at the northern edge of the South Ridges. Terraced vegetables and wheat is their stock and trade. Elder Alutikal Summerbreeze directs the farming powerhouse that is Palehill while maintaining a solid friendship and business partnership with Elder Narab'in Riverrun. Rumours abound that they two are more than just friends, but for now that is all they are. Ashglen - Elder Ruklia Yellowbirch leads and trains the most militant of the surviving settlements, trying to follow in the footsteps of her mother, Baeren Yellowbirch. Ashglen itself is another farming community and the only holder of what remains Ruklia and her knights can find about the Firebreak Coven, of which her mother was a leading member. Darklake - Darklake is the only settlement which can still claim fishing as a primary profession and economic export. The lake itself gets enough runoff from the mountains to be sufficiently deep enough and to never dry out, while the river flowing north allows for easy enough travel. Elder Vylbrike Lightrain has been leading his people for as long as anyone can remember. He maintains a cordial relationship with Elder Vakosi, as the two have been friends for many years. Thin River - Elder Casica Keenluck stands with Toricas, Zeten, and Narab'in as the new blood among the Council of Flames. Unlike them, however, she has taken steps to end her people's isolation and establish more meaning full relationships beyond simple trading. Volunteers have taken part in outreach programs to introduce outsiders to the normally isolationist Ridges, while she has made great effort to bring in outsiders to see her people's culture. Green River - Led by Elder Melathak Runeshade, Green River stands as the largest river settlement in the Northern Ridges. Sprawling along the shores of the river from which it gets it's name, it is the last settlement that could be considered cosmopolitan and is easily the richest among them. Melathak currently leads on the back of his former military experience, which consists mostly of fighting Amani trolls and the occasional border skirmish with the Ridges northern and western neighbors. Sparrow’s Creek - Seen over by Elder Senkila Fallowfield, Sparrow's Creek is the current replacement for the Ridges capitol, Rivermill. The Council of the Flame, a council of representatives chosen from each of the remaining settlements, meets here once every two months to discuss the affairs of the Ridges. Meetings tend to be rowdy affairs, with more than a few brawls breaking out amongst the younger, more hot-headed members of the Council. Sparrow's Creek also is the oldest settlement in the area, having existed in one state or another since the elves first came to the shores of Quel'thelas. While it isn't the biggest or the richest, it is the most prestigious. Decisions made by Elder Senkila have weight, and some whisper that she might wield enough power to rival that of the Redarrows from before the Fall. The elder herself would deny such things, claiming as always that she is a servant to her people and nothing more. Blackhollow - Destroyed in the Burning, Blackhollow now is home to a semi-permanent population of the Dancing Dead. Ashhome - Burned to the ground as the last sign of resistance in the Southern Ridges. Rumors abound that it wasn't caused by the dead, that it was done by one of the Firebreak Coven, but these are unsubstantiated. Rivermill - Abandoned, lost to the Dancing Dead almost immediately after the Fall. Former Capital city of the Ridges and the regional seat of power for the Redarrow family. Ma Vhelas’an - See Ma Vhelas’an Wolfvale - Overrun by the Dancing Dead and abandoned as one of the last holdouts of the Southern Ridges. Briar Glen - As the rest of the south fell, some voluntarily chose to leave their homes to survive. Briar Glen is one such place untouched by the dead, but a lifeless shell regardless. It's people relocated to Ashglen, and have survived since. Ashford - Situated close to the edge of the mountains themselves, Ashford has remained overrun by the Scourge in the wake of the betrayal by Dar'Khan and the creation of Deathholme due to it's proximity to the cursed place. Hawk's Vale - Not every community has a central place of business; Hawk's Vale was no different. It's decentralized structure did it no favors when the Fall came, and being nestled in the deepest parts of the Vale only made escape impossible. Today it stands ruined and lifeless. Arrowend - The isolation of the Ridges have claimed many souls in its time, but no part of the mountains may be quite as cursed as Arrowend. Once a fairly prosperous logging settlement, the settlers began to face invasions from Amani trolls and other beasts of the forests. In order to protect themselves, all gates to the town were sealed. Few accounts have ever determined what exactly happened in Arrowend after they withdrew from communication. Many believed them to be dead at first, but rumors spread that there were still elves living in the area. With no land for harvesting and their hunting sources often taken by the Amani, the question became how they were surviving. One citizen was found, mumbling and half-mad at a nearby village. Little could be determined, only the implication of his words - *we ate to survive*. Arrowend was never disturbed. There were enough legends to deter anyone from stepping foot near it. After the Fall, it was considered defunct, thought to have certainly been destroyed by the Scourge. However, it does not explain the sulking figures in the trees, mad-eyed and hungry but no less alive. Wintermarch - Not all places fell to the dead. Some chose their own immolation as their last defiance against their implacable foe. A group chose to remain behind and, as the Scourge closed around them and tore apart their homes, set the entire settlement ablaze. None survived. Category:Places Category:Quel'Thalas Locations